Dramatic Yet Witty!

Who else expected me to come out with a blog post about my trip to my native place after such a long break? Well, here it is and trust me, it’s been all about the emotions from the mesh detangling. Let’s start with the journey itself. It’s usually a bus ride for us, but this time we decided to take the train and by the book, I think that was the best decision we could’ve made. Reaching Tirunelveli bus stand in the early morning, grabbing a hot cup of coffee and a crisp vada from the tiny shop there. Ah, nothing else comes close to that simple bliss. Homecoming used to mean a house overrunning with relatives and cousins, laughter echoing through every corner and painting the town red. This year, it was fainting. That’s when I got to the picture of life moving too fast. We’ve all scattered across different cities, living in our own worlds. Part of me just wants to rewind time, to those childhood days of running around with my cousins completely nonchalant.  Visiting the place where my pa...

"Hello," says a person from this super delayed post! (I'm also tenacious, so it'd reach out for sure)  The story continues-> The moment I landed, one thought ran wild in my head: This is where it all begins. That moment when you start noticing every tiny thing that makes a place feel “foreign.” OMG—it’s me, in a foreign land! It felt surreal, my brain was kind of confused but in the most beautiful way. Not sure if everyone goes through that, but it was like my dramatic and naive side showed up just to say hi to this brand new world, all prepped to experience everything. The very first thing that caught my eye? The railway tracks. We had to take the RE(Regional express) and something inside me just went, wait a second- these tracks look the same! The stones that make up the tracks, just like in India. I know it sounds silly, but these are exactly the little norms my mind latches onto when it’s trying to process newness. We hopped on the train, immediately sorted our...

While the series blog is on hold, I am taking this opportunity to share this mid-post. And just to set the record straight, I’m definitely not trying to provoke jealousy by writing about my sister! In this post, I’m not just expressing emotions, took enough time to articulate this bond of sisterhood and giving it the recognition it deserves. There’s a clear reason why people refer to elder sisters as the third parent without batting an eyelid. She takes me to beautiful places, buys me all the cute stuff, cooks for me, takes care of me—basically, she does it all. This isn't just bragging; I’m genuinely in awe of how my sister can be so much more than one could imagine. It's clear I follow in her footsteps, and I’m proud to do so (ultimate credit to our parents). At the same time, she’s given me invaluable advice on areas where I can grow, making sure I become an even better person than she is. Not everyone has this level of sincerity. We learn from our mistakes, but don't yo...

26th Nov: My First Solo Travel Emotions were running high, but I managed to pack them all into my carry-on bag. And of course, who wouldn’t be excited for their first international flight experience? I'd never been on a flight longer than 2 hours, so this was a whole new world. I kept pinching myself, just to make sure this was real – and yes, it was! Chennai to Frankfurt, here we go. The security check and immigration process were a breeze, and after a quick hour of waiting at the gate, I grabbed some water. Then came the best part—boarding the plane through the vestibule. It was huge, easily the largest and longest flight I’d ever been on. My mission? To find my seat. And, of course, there it was—my window seat. (All 7 flights on this trip had window seats, by the way—lucky me!) I could hardly contain my excitement for takeoff. I didn’t say it out loud, but there’s something undeniably magical about the moment the plane lifts off, no matter where you're headed. 10 hours of so...

2024 has truly been a year of transformation for me. It’s shown me what real change feels like. I’ve experienced every emotion imaginable—fear, joy, sadness, courage, excitement, curiosity, longing, and so much more.  Who would have thought my most stressful year would end in the blink of an eye? Who would have thought I’d finish my quota what once seemed impossible? That I’d board a solo 10-hour flight, visit the Eiffel Tower, or even fall in love with traveling, despite my former aversion? And who could have imagined that my brother-in-law would become a brother to me in every sense? And Christmas? Christmas, a celebration I’d never experienced before, brought me the most heartwarming memories this year (more on the Christmas markets and food in a later blog post). "Drastic" might be too strong a word, but I can't help but use it to describe a year that has redefined me. Let me take you on a quick ride through my thoughts. A few days ago, I was being appreciated for the...

People ask me why I stopped writing. Sometimes, it's not a sudden loss of interest; it's simply that nothing has ignited my creativity or captured my imagination to take a pen and wield.  Consider picking up one micelle from the flow: GOSSIP.  “I don’t gossip. Occasionally, I come across information or hear something and pass it on—kind of like a public service.” If you know RACHEL, you know this.  Despite understanding how harmful and toxic gossip can be, and that it undermines relationships and damages community culture, people still engage in it. It’s a psychological pattern I’ll never quite grasp. I'm not writing this as if I’ve never participated in gossip myself. I’ve experienced both sides—the giving and receiving ends—and neither is pretty. If you’re concerned about the latter, remember: let's normalize the fact that not everyone will appreciate or like you, and that gossip is a reality. The world is so vast that other people's opinions matter little. If you...